MLK remembered in Montclair

By Eric Kiefer

Staff Writer |

The Montclair Times

The fight is not over.

Kay Eggleston and Louise Brewington, right, then a member of Union Baptist Church, present a portrait of Martin Luther King to his wife, Coretta Scott King, on May 18, 1969. Brewington presently attends Trinity Presbyterian Church.

First signed into federal law in 1983, Martin Luther King Jr. Day - which marks King's birthday and is widely celebrated as a day to acknowledge civil rights - was not officially observed in all 50 U.S. states until 2000, according to TimeAndDate.com.

Not even celebrating the man's legacy came easy, it seems.

"King's challenge remains our challenge ... securing the civil rights of people of color in this nation," said the Rev. Allen Shelton, pastor of Trinity Presbyterian Church. "We remember Dr. King because freedom was not then, and is not now, free."

To commemorate the holiday, the Montclair African American Clergy Association, in partnership with the Montclair Clergy Association and the Montclair NAACP, is sponsoring a 12:15 p.m. service of "celebration and reflection" at First United Methodist Church, 24 North Fullerton Ave, this coming Monday, Jan. 20 - Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

Services will include music, liturgical dance, prayer and an inspirational message from the Rev. Bernadette Glover, interim pastor of St. Paul Baptist Church.

PERSONAL MEMORIES

"When Dr. King was assassinated, I was 7 years old," Shelton told The Montclair Times. "I remember the pain in my parents' eyes as we watched the images on television. Even at a young age, I knew that his life was special."

Tom Reynolds, the president of the Montclair NAACP, said that, to him, King's legend began as a set of stories told by his grandmother.

"It was hard to visualize what racism is from inside the Montclair public schools," said Reynolds. "But after my first time experiencing discrimination, all I've read from Dr. King took a new meaning. His strength taught me that I could stand up for what was right. His ability to speak truth to power taught me that I could do the same. Now, Dr. King provides a guide for how I try to live my life. Even his speeches about being fiscally responsible resonate with me."

IF KING WERE ALIVE IN MONTCLAIR TODAY...

If King were alive and residing in Montclair today, Shelton said that he would be addressing the same issue that he addressed nationally in the 1960s ... poverty.

"I believe Dr. King would openly protest the income disparities in Montclair between the 'haves' and the 'have-nots,'" said Shelton. "He'd work for affordable housing for the working class and the working poor in Montclair. I also think that he would form a coalition of churches, community organizations, business and the Montclair Board of Education to address the achievement gap in the Montclair School District."

Reynolds said that he believes that King would be fighting for education and economic justice. He opined that King would be excited about Montclair's magnet school system, would question the town's diversity on many levels, speak loudly about economic sustainability and support local organizations like the Montclair Neighborhood Development Corp.

"I believe that Dr. King would call on all of us to look inward," Reynolds told The Times. "In 1968, the movement was able to do more with less.

MLK remembered in Montclair

Kay Eggleston and Louise Brewington, right, then a member of Union Baptist Church, present a portrait of Martin Luther King to his wife, Coretta Scott King, on May 18, 1969. Brewington presently attends Trinity Presbyterian Church.

First signed into federal law in 1983, Martin Luther King Jr. Day - which marks King's birthday and is widely celebrated as a day to acknowledge civil rights - was not officially observed in all 50 U.S. states until 2000, according to TimeAndDate.com.

Not even celebrating the man's legacy came easy, it seems.

"King's challenge remains our challenge ... securing the civil rights of people of color in this nation," said the Rev. Allen Shelton, pastor of Trinity Presbyterian Church. "We remember Dr. King because freedom was not then, and is not now, free."

To commemorate the holiday, the Montclair African American Clergy Association, in partnership with the Montclair Clergy Association and the Montclair NAACP, is sponsoring a 12:15 p.m. service of "celebration and reflection" at First United Methodist Church, 24 North Fullerton Ave, this coming Monday, Jan. 20 - Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

Services will include music, liturgical dance, prayer and an inspirational message from the Rev. Bernadette Glover, interim pastor of St. Paul Baptist Church.

PERSONAL MEMORIES

"When Dr. King was assassinated, I was 7 years old," Shelton told The Montclair Times. "I remember the pain in my parents' eyes as we watched the images on television. Even at a young age, I knew that his life was special."

Tom Reynolds, the president of the Montclair NAACP, said that, to him, King's legend began as a set of stories told by his grandmother.

"It was hard to visualize what racism is from inside the Montclair public schools," said Reynolds. "But after my first time experiencing discrimination, all I've read from Dr. King took a new meaning. His strength taught me that I could stand up for what was right. His ability to speak truth to power taught me that I could do the same. Now, Dr. King provides a guide for how I try to live my life. Even his speeches about being fiscally responsible resonate with me."

IF KING WERE ALIVE IN MONTCLAIR TODAY...

If King were alive and residing in Montclair today, Shelton said that he would be addressing the same issue that he addressed nationally in the 1960s ... poverty.

"I believe Dr. King would openly protest the income disparities in Montclair between the 'haves' and the 'have-nots,'" said Shelton. "He'd work for affordable housing for the working class and the working poor in Montclair. I also think that he would form a coalition of churches, community organizations, business and the Montclair Board of Education to address the achievement gap in the Montclair School District."

Reynolds said that he believes that King would be fighting for education and economic justice. He opined that King would be excited about Montclair's magnet school system, would question the town's diversity on many levels, speak loudly about economic sustainability and support local organizations like the Montclair Neighborhood Development Corp.

"I believe that Dr. King would call on all of us to look inward," Reynolds told The Times. "In 1968, the movement was able to do more with less.